Angel
by peacock blue eyes
Summary: He was sure now that even if she had traded her wings for a fish's tail and monstrous fangs, she was without a doubt the messenger God had sent to bring him eternal peace.


**Disclaimer: PoTC and everything officially related to it is not mine except for this story cuz I worked 24 hours on it, dammit.**

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><p><strong><span>Human<span>**

Philip has always devoted himself to his faith more than anything in his life. His belief was more resolute than the tallest mountain on this Earth. So when the pirates plundered the town he was staying in, killed all its inhabitants and his fellow missionaries and left him alive only to tie him to the mast to pray for their souls, namely their most amoral captain and the First Mate's own father, Blackbeard, he did not doubt his God for a heartbeat. He believed that the Almighty Lord will deliver the righteous and the compassionate and punish the evil and the wicked. Yet he also believed, strongly so, that sinners, no matter how deep their crimes ran or how much blood they've spilled, had the right to redemption. Who was he to deny them salvation if they realize their deeds and ask for forgiveness? He was just a humble man of God. His goal was to preach His teachings and help guide lost lambs back onto the right path. He has never done otherwise nor does he plan to change now. Regardless of how much he despises Blackbeard, he wouldn't let his hatred take over his conscience like greed and selfishness had taken over the man's black heart and did as Angelica had requested him to do. Pray for the soul of Blackbeard to be saved, even if he thought the man was a bit of long shot from any possible saving.

He prayed, dutifully and constantly, knowing that God surely heard him.

And he did, though the answer he got was never what he expected even in his wildest dreams. No, the answer he received came in the form of a mysterious young mermaid with the most innocent eyes he had ever locked gazes with.

Philip never thought much of pagan myths or tales. He heard countless stories and warnings from sailors during the course of his travels but chose not to believe them as they were not creations of God. He did not scorn nor shun them, he simply chose not to believe them. So when he learned that the crew was sailing to the Fountain of Youth with the goal of capturing a mermaid on the way for the necessary ritual, he believed it was a journey made in vain. He still thought so when Blackbeard had them sitting in boats and armed with swords in Whitecap Bay, waiting for the mermaids to show up, the man-made light shining down upon the waters and Scrum's singing to lure them to the surface.

Minutes passed, maybe hours. He was too exhausted to count and closed his eyes for a short while to get what little rest he could until he heard a tiny splash. Quickly, he raised his head and stared over the side of the boat, managing to catch a glimpse of something glimmering past them. He alerted the others and they all went to the edge to try and see what he saw. 'It must have been a big fish or a dolphin,' he thought. There couldn't possibly be things such as mermaids though he found himself wondering why he was growing so unsure with each passing second.

When they raised their eyes, there it was. A mermaid, her arms propped up on the side of their boat as she stared at them inquisitively and unafraid. Immediately, the man beside him drew his knife and moved to stab her but Philip quickly held him back, his mind still trying to grasp the sight before him. She was truly beautiful, as if she was not a part of this world with her golden hair, flawless complexion and mesmerizing eyes.

She approached again, having retreated a bit from the man's outburst. Scrum leaned forward and asked "Can you talk?"

"_Yes," _she answers, now with a smile on her face. What an enchanting voice. Philip could feel his heartstrings being tugged with every syllable that dropped from her tongue but soon became distracted as her singing brought more of her kind to them. He frantically looked around him as they continued emerging, endlessly and drawing closer with ravenous hunger concealed behind the glows of their eyes.

'_This is bad.' _No sooner had those words crossed his mind that they pulled Scrum back before the mermaid could completely drag him under. Shrieking in rage, her entire body leaped out of the water and knocked one of the men off the boat, setting hell loose in the bay.

His body fell as their boat was ripped to shreds and all he could think was _land land land_ as he avoided being caught in their claws. He grabbed the rocky ledge as soon as he reached it and hoisted himself up, gasping for breath before moving to lie on his back and hoped that they will not catch him here where he is hidden from the battle's view. Roars and screams filled the once tranquil night sky, so deafening it was that he could barely concentrate on anything but the chaos, the sheer terror surrounding him.

_'They are real…My God, they are real!'_ kept repeating itself over and over in his head. And they were out to kill them, all of them. Things he never thought existed, never believed existed were running wild in the bay, tearing the limbs of those poor souls apart and staining the water with clouds of blood. The gory images that ran through his head made the bile in his stomach churn as his eyes bulged and he clamped a hand over his mouth, sitting up so he could shove the need to vomit back down. He shook his head, trying to collect his thoughts together. Now was not the time to panic. He had managed to evade their murderous clutches but there are still many out there in danger. He must help them before the monsters reached them first.

Philip stood, not know that there was something watching him nearby, to see the lighthouse ignite in an enormous blaze as Jack Sparrow jumped from it into the bay below. Suddenly, he felt a hand around his boot and before he could register what it was, it tugged him forward and his head hit the floor, sending his vision in circles as flaming debris came crashing down. It didn't take him long to recover and when he did, right in front of him was a large tail floundering in the water, trying to escape the wreckage that had fallen on her. At once, he went to free her, knowing she would try to get away as soon as he did and that he had to secure the mermaid at whatever costs. It had never occurred to him that he was actively following Blackbeard's exact orders, which was the last thing he ever intended to do.

'But a mermaid isn't human', he thought. It is a bloodthirsty creature and judging from what he has just witnessed, it has no soul. It was an animal, thinking only to survive on the lives of unfortunate sailors they seduced. His objective, forced on him though it is, was to aid Blackbeard, despicable but _human _nonetheless. Not worry for the fate of a fish.

With that at the back of his mind, he chased after her the instant she shirked away. She was fast, too fast. He had to think of something and quick. He gripped the hilt of his sword and stabbed it down, not even looking where he was aiming at or if he had missed. The shrill hiss that followed told him that he didn't and he realized he had caught one of her fins with his blade. A thin line of blood streamed from the wound when his gaze fell upon it. He let his eyes trail up her form, from the glistening red scales of her tail up to where it changed to the skin of her waist, past her flat stomach and small breasts draped by the long tresses of her brown hair and the lovely shape of her face to finally settle on her eyes.

It was then that Philip felt an inconceivable pull he has never experienced before nor was it something he could find the words to explain. Staring back at him was not the bottomless pit of emptiness or the wrath of a beast he was expecting but the fear of a vulnerable girl as she trembled before him. Briefly, he noticed her eyes were a pretty hazel and the fire from the burning lighthouse only served to illuminate the life within them. Yes, life. Why was it there? It shouldn't have been. It shouldn't be there, swirling in a blend of emotions and colors and lights of amber, captivating him with all the ethereal qualities it possessed.

However, it was and he was soon filled with dread and regret at his assumptions now proven wrong. What has he done? This mermaid, this…this defenseless _girl_. He had to let her go before the crew finds them and do what horrible things they have planned for her. He grabbed his sword and pulled it out, ready to yell at her to go but it was too late. The net fell on her, her hisses drowned out by the laughs of triumph from the pirates. Blackbeard sauntered his way over, a dark, satisfied grin plastered over his face as he looked down at their captive to him. "Well done, sailor," he complimented, genuinely impressed that the clergyman won them the prize of the day. Philip has never been disgusted by him more.

They moved on, the mermaid confined to her glass coffin as they made their way through the thick jungle. Philip's occasional glances back at her later grew into a semi-vigil. She didn't belong in there, trapped against her will. And it was his fault. He knew it was his fault that had gotten her into this mess and he could think of nothing to get her out of it.

The next time he looked back at her, she was suffering and he immediately knew she needed air. He rushed up to case and tried to push open the cover but it wouldn't budge and neither would the Quartermaster when he told him they were killing her. So he grabbed the zombie's sword and pried the lid open, even if just a bit. There was a sharp intake of breath and relief flooded him as he went to check if she was alright. Her cheek rested against the glass as her chest heaved in and out but her eyes met his in something he could not discern. Was it gratitude? Bewilderment? He could not tell but he was glad he was able to help her him some way.

The jungle proved more difficult to walk through as they went deeper into its wilderness. One of the pirates holding up the coffin slipped on a branch and it fell, the glass shattering from the sudden drop and the mermaid slid out with the water that had been contained with her. Her tail flapped against the ground helplessly before she flipped her body over and withdrew into herself. There was silence as they all watched her fins transform into two separate feet, her tail separating into two legs as the scales vanished into flesh. At the sound of Blackbeard's voice, Philip snapped to his senses and darted forward to clothe her naked form with his shirt. She looked at him, again with the same expression he was given when he helped her with the coffin. He wanted to say something, ask if she was alright but Blackbeard cut him off.

"You _will_ walk." The command was so final that Philip couldn't help but glare at him incredulously. Walk? She's injured! How can he tell her, who has probably never went this far in on land in her life, to just get up and walk?

He felt her shoulders shift under his hands and turning back, he could see how intimidated she was by Blackbeard. If she were still safe in the waters, she would have bared her fangs at him for even daring to threaten her. Here, she had no choice but to obey and Philip could tell by the desperateness in her eyes, the way her jaw was set, how she wobbly stood with his assistance, that she absolutely did not wish to die. She took a few shaky steps forward only to collapse to a heap on the ground.

"I…cannot," she said, voice traced with pain and shame at her own weakness. Blackbeard, however, did not care.

"Walk or die," he responded casually and the Quartermaster appeared at her side, his sword only inches away from her head.

Philip could not bear it any longer and knelt by the girl again. "Put your arms around me," he said quietly, hoping she would comply. The less trouble they had with this man, the better.

She turned with an offended look that surprised him. "I do not ask for help," came her sharp reply. Oh Lord, she has some pride behind that timid exterior after all. That wasn't surprising to him.

Philip kept patient, trying to convey to her with the best sympathetic gaze he can manage that he was on her side. That she can trust him. "But you need it." He was pleading her. He did not intend for it to come out that way but he couldn't care less at the moment. He didn't want her to die here either and there was a chance, if Blackbeard could be saved when he drinks from the Fountain that he would merciful enough to let her go when he has no more need of her. It was closer to an impossible hope than he would like to admit but he would be willing to throw away all his loathing for this malevolent man if this miracle could happen.

She eyed him warily, weighing the decision on whether she should rely on him or not before finally relenting by sliding one arm around his neck. He had no time to smile his thanks to her as he carefully lifted her up into his arms and stood up straight. He could feel her slightly uneven breath on his collarbone and the wetness seeping through the material of his loaned shirt onto his skin as he held her but forced himself to focus as he turned to face Blackbeard, glowering at him with contempt. "We're in a hurry, yes?"

Eventually, Angelica called for the group to rest while they try to determine which direction to head next. Philip set her down on a large root of a tree before releasing a tired sigh, keeping to himself so no one would notice his fatigue. She was by no means heavy to carry but it was no easy feat doing so for hours trekking through trees, shrubs and rivers either. Still, he decided that he wouldn't let any of the other crew members near her as long as he can still walk. He's noticed the way some of them had looked at her, eyeing her like she was some morsel of meat. He shouldn't have expected less from pirates, men of little to no decency, but it bothered him all the same. Shaking his head, he glanced at her to see her staring demurely down at her toes as if they were the most fascinating things she'd ever come across. He suddenly had the urge to look into those hazel eyes of hers again, to see what mysteries they held and to ask her the things he still can't wrap his head around.

Against his usual better judgment, he knelt in front of her and this caused her to fix those bright brown orbs on him. Great, he has her attention. Now what?

As he paused to think up something to say, she shifted uncomfortably under his stare and he scolded himself for not having something prepared beforehand. So he said the only thing that could think of. He called her beautiful. Or rather, he did in a less than direct way. He wanted to hit himself for his saccharine words (he was a missionary, not a poet!) and to his horror, he just kept on going. About how God must have created her for he has never seen anything as fair as her. She watched him, perplexed, as if trying to understand what he wanted to express. Philip appreciated that. He really did because she was the only one here to take his words seriously even if she did not know what they meant. At that realization, the small happiness disappeared as swiftly as it came. How _could_ she comprehend what he was saying? She did not know about God or prayers or religion. She only knew of the sea, her sisters and her life as a mermaid.

Philip remembered now, that this girl was the one who had attempted to drown him at the bay. How could he have forgotten? And even if she didn't, even though he wished she didn't because he was so drawn in by the power of her eyes and enthralled by her beauty, they were still worlds away from each other. They were too different. They weren't even the same species!

The thought greatly saddened him and then he felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment as he bowed his head, hoping she wouldn't notice. He had just accidentally tried to court her. Her, a _mermaid_. In the middle of a jungle, surrounded by pirates. Was he insane?

Angry at himself for falling into what was such an obvious trap, even if she had no intention of seducing him in the first place, Philip took out his irritation on her by subtly biting out, "Such beauty…yet deadly." Yes, that's what she was. Deadly. He should have never thought otherwise. The only thing that they had in common was that they were captives under a pirate. That was all.

Not wanting to stay in her presence any longer, he stood and was about to walk away only to be stopped by her exclaiming that he was wrong, making him turn back with mild shock written all over his face. She continued with some strange newfound confidence that she had wanted to protect him when the lighthouse exploded above him, just like he had protected her all this way when she couldn't breathe in her glass case and when she couldn't walk.

"You are different," she says, those beautiful brown eyes so pure and so naïve but so certain of what she believes. And the person she believes in was _him_. Because he had shown her kindness when no one else would, cared for her when no one else did.

He was, at the very least, quite taken aback by this faith he didn't knew she had in him. He wondered why she suddenly seemed so familiar and why he felt so calmed by her assurance of him. Then, he knew why. This trust she has given him. It's similar to the trust he had placed in God. That God would protect those who had faith in Him. Is that not almost the same thing as what she is showing him now? That she knew _he_ would protect _her_.

And when she said he was different, he knew she did not mean that _they_ were different. She had implied that they were alike since they have helped each other, had she not? She was not like her sisters who wanted humans for food and he was not like the pirates who wanted her for her tears. No, they were not so different like he originally thought they were. They were different from the others, not each other.

For that reason, he became so overwhelmed with gladness, as if a giant tidal wave has washed all his doubts and worries away from those three simple words she told him.

Unfortunately, the moment was ruined when Blackbeard's voice boomed across the area. "Bring the creature!"

Philip gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. Having only gotten over his own misunderstanding of the girl, he couldn't help but want to defend her from anyone who tried to treat her as anything less than a person. He knew now. This girl, this mermaid has a soul. Although he could not speak on behalf of her sisters, he knew she was different and would not stand those, who will never amount to half of what she did for him, to disrespect her anymore.

Not even needing the courage, he glared fiercely at the black-clad captain and shouted as loud as he could, "**She has a name!**"

Everyone in the clearing froze and all eyes turned to him. Even she looked startled by the eruption of his temper and he prayed that she wouldn't doubt him. Not now when they had established a connection with each other and he swore, he _vowed_ to set her free even if it will cost him his life.

Blackbeard blinked at him as if he had gone crazy but just held his hands up mockingly and said, "Pray tell," as if he couldn't give a damn.

Philip averted his gaze back to her, waiting for her to tell him her name. He wished he had asked her sooner, ever since she fell out of her cage and they exchanged words for the first time. She stared up at him, though, and did not utter a sound. 'So she doesn't have one,' he deduced from her silence. Then he will give her one. It was better than not having a name and let them continue viewing her as an animal.

He fleetingly recalls the stories sailors have told him, about the Sirens and how they lured people to their deaths with their bewitching songs, just like the mermaids. However, he did not want to associate her with such gruesome legends because he knew that there was no corruption that could taint this foreign grace he has found. She deserved a beautiful name and one suited especially and uniquely for her.

"She is Syrena," he decides. For she possesses all the fairness her kind is known for and a rare inner beauty like no other.

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><p><strong>AN: **I know, kinda lame to explain and end it like that but it made sense in my head. Unfortunately, my head is not your head so you might think it's still lame. Gah, sorry.

This was supposed to be a (apparently very lengthy) one-shot but I've been working on this all day and figured it's a good place to stop. It doesn't help if you go on endlessly cuz then the quality will just get worse. So it's going to be a two-shot instead. At least, I hope I can finish this as a two-shot cuz I seriously have to work on my other fic as well.

Right, so I had a lot fun writing from Philip's POV. I must have squealed and giggled madly like five times while writing this because I never thought there would be so many different aspects of his character that I couldn't see until I wrote it out in front of me. Yes, he is very interesting (and cute) to write and I'm eager to get started on the next one where we will transition from this stage, where he learns to accept Syrena as an equal human-like being, to when he sees her as his savior, hence the title "Angel". There will probably be more spiritual traits or the like incorporated into the second chapter since I really want to capture his religiousness. It's such a strong part of him and I really want to do his personality justice so I might have to wrack my brains to remember what I know about religious studies from those 8 years spent in Catholic school. Oh, and I don't have a religion either (I do believe in God, though) so I apologize if I had gotten anything wrong in here and would be grateful if someone can point out those mistakes so I can fix them. If you can tell me some things I **need** to know about Christianity or Catholicism and so on, I would totally love you for that, too.

On another note, I hope I portrayed everyone close to in-character or that you can understand my interpretation of them or both. Blackbeard, I'm kinda iffy on how evil I made him. I mean, he has minor speaking parts here but he's still got a significant role in the grand scheme of things until we get to the part where Philip escapes. And I know I sped through several scenes very quickly and there must be so many inaccuracies but it's already been more than a day since I saw the movie so my memory is getting blurrier by the minute. Which is why I tried to put more weight on the details instead of the dialogue. *grunts* Someone please tell me, though, when did Philip tell Syrena his name again? Was it during the scene where she said he was different? I'm not sure and I might have to go back and edit that later.

*sigh* Ok then, uh, I have to go set up my bed and sleep. Might fix errors when I wake up. Please tell me what you think! :)


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